Amazon plans to sunset its Amazon Care employer offering at the end of the year, according to an internal memo first reported by GeekWire and Fierce Healthcare.
The email from Neil Lindsay, senior vice president of Amazon Health Services, said the service will officially shut down on December 31. The decision only affects Amazon Care and its Care Medical group of providers, not the company’s other healthcare projects.
“This decision wasn’t made lightly and only became clear after many months of careful consideration,” Lindsay wrote to Amazon Health Services employees. “Although our enrolled members have loved many aspects of Amazon Care, it is not a complete enough offering for the large enterprise customers we have been targeting, and wasn’t going to work long-term.”
THE LARGER TREND
Amazon Care launched in 2019 as a virtual clinic for its own employees, but the service later expanded to outside employers. Earlier this year, the company announced it was adding in–person care options in more than 20 new cities in 2022, including New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Miami.
Just weeks ago, Insider reported on a live website that detailed the addition of behavioral health services to Amazon Care, including a partnership with digital mental health company Ginger.
But the tech and retail giant has already made big news in healthcare this year. In late July, Amazon announced plans to acquire hybrid primary care provider One Medical in an all-cash deal worth approximately $3.9 billion. The deal hasn’t yet closed.
Amazon is also reportedly one of the bidders for in-home health technology and services provider Signify Health, according to The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News. Other interested players include UnitedHealth Group and Option Care Health.
ON THE RECORD
“As we take our learnings from Amazon Care, we will continue to invent, learn from our customers and industry partners, and hold ourselves to the highest standards as we further help reimagine the future of healthcare,” Lindsay wrote.
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